This Is What Cake Sprinkles Look Like Magnified 65 Times

Mom was wrong all along — playing with your food can actually
make really neat pictures.

The images below were produced by Caren Alpert, a
San-Francisco-based artist who has turned her passion for food,
science, and photography into a project titled terra
cibus.

Focusing on everyday foods like chocolate cake, blueberries, and
table salt, Alpert uses scientific laboratory equipment to
capture her subjects at a microscopic level. The purpose, she
explains in her artist statement, is to "empower viewers to
reconsider how they think about their food."

It certainly has us pondering how much less tempting an
assortment of colorful tiny candies looks under the lens rather
than dusted over a fluffy baked good.

Take a look and tell us what you think. The first image is a
photo of cake sprinkles magnified 65 times. The second one is a
shrimp tail magnified 230 times. You can view the full gallery of
magnifed foods at Caren
Alpert Fine Art.